TONY BLAIR has given Ed Miliband his backing saying the Labour leader had his "full support".

The former Prime Minister also described his successor as "robust" enough to deal with the recent criticism of his leadership.

But his praise came after he initially tried not to be drawn on Labour's woes, saying the topic was not one for him to discuss.

Last month Mr Blair was forced to deny claims he had predicted Labour would lose the 2015 General Election.

Yesterday's intervention came as one Labour MP did suggest the party would fail to win next May.

David Lammy, one of the frontrunners to be Labour's candidate in the next London mayoral election, forecast another hung parliament.

Mr Blair, who led Labour to three successive General Election victories, made his comments during an interview on the continuing crisis around Ebola.

Asked about Mr Miliband, who last week denied that some of his MPs wanted him to stand aside, Mr Blair said that current Labour party politics were "not a topic for me today".

After he was repeatedly pressed on the issue, however, he added that Mr Miliband was "robust enough" to deal with the recent criticism of his leadership.

He also said that the Labour leader had his "full support" and appeared to accept that Mr Miliband had had a difficult week.

"That's what leadership is about and I'm sure he's robust enough to take it," he said.

Asked whether Mr Miliband was the right man for the top job, Mr Blair said: "I've had these things 1000 times and I've always said he has my full support and that's the end of it."

Yesterday Alan Johnson, the former Home Secretary, ruled himself out of ever running for the Labour leadership.

There had been speculation that Mr Johnson could serve as an interim leader between now and the General Election. But he insisted that he would never run to lead his party and said the question of Labour's leadership "must not be re-opened".

Many MPs are increasingly nervous about Labour's chances just six months before voters go to the polls. Others argue that it is too late for the party to change leader and not face a thumping at the election.

Mr Lammy said his prediction was that there would be either another coalition or a minority government after 2015.

He said: "I don't want to knock Ed personally. I think it's a whole team issue. In the end, all of the major players that contribute to the Labour message... have a lot to do between now and the General Election. A lot to do!"

He forecast that next year's election would be "phenomenally close".

He added: "I am not moving off my assumption, when I collapsed on to my sofa after the last General Election with my wife and watched Nick Clegg and David Cameron walk into number 10, and that is we are in for a decade of either minority or coalition government. That was my general view [in 2010] there's very little that's shifted."